Embracing participation to unlock deeper truths in commercial research
Summary
Participatory research and co-design have long been seen as tools for the third sector, yet they hold untapped potential for both the commercial and public sectors. These transformative techniques can unlock richer, more inclusive insights, empowering you to move beyond surface-level knowledge. In a time when the demand for equity and deeper insight is growing, it’s vital to embrace and operationalize participatory methods. We’ll show you how to weave these methods into your everyday commercial work, driving innovation, engagement, and meaningful impact across organizations.
Key Insights
-
•
Participatory research is as much a mindset as a methodology, changing how research is conceptualized and executed.
-
•
Traditional research often reinforces hierarchical power, while participatory research democratizes knowledge creation.
-
•
Deconstructing and simplifying traditional tools like journey maps helps enable true co-creation with participants.
-
•
Participatory research is valuable at all stages of product development, especially in the exploratory and generative phases.
-
•
Using low-fidelity artifacts like storyboards or collages encourages participant creativity and richer insights.
-
•
Stakeholder resistance to participatory methods often stems from fear of unknowns and unfamiliarity with outcomes.
-
•
Involving stakeholders as co-facilitators or participants in sessions can ease their concerns and increase buy-in.
-
•
Managing candid, passionate participant feedback requires framing it as a positive sign of engagement, not defiance.
-
•
Creating clear engagement guidelines and setting expectations helps build psychological safety in participatory sessions.
-
•
Participatory research can reveal systemic issues by amplifying voices closest to the problem, enabling deeper understanding.
Notable Quotes
"Participatory research isn't just a method, it is a mindset that can radically transform the way we do research and the impact we make."
"Too often research is something we do to people, but participatory research invites participants as co-creators of knowledge."
"I think of a journey map as a suggestion, not a rule, and I might take parts of it to fit the context and people."
"Participatory research feels more like improv, not a scripted play; you don't know where the session will go, which is exciting."
"Using modules or templates in co-design helps participants remix and add, making it easier to surface rich insights."
"Stakeholders often fear participatory research because they don’t know the resources required or the outcomes they’ll get."
"I sometimes avoid the word participatory because it can sound scary; I just call it research and let it be participatory by default."
"Participatory sessions provide a unique chance to connect with users who might otherwise be hard to reach."
"Candor and passionate feedback from participants shows they believe their input matters and are willing to be vulnerable."
"We have to set expectations that what we discuss might be a blue sky vision and won't necessarily be implemented immediately."
Or choose a question:
More Videos
"If a new regime doesn’t value design, you’re still going to get design, it’s just going to suck."
Jeff GothelfThe Intersection of Lean and Design
January 10, 2019
"On lower layers, research spaces are limited and focused, while at higher layers, problem spaces are ambiguous and require holistic approaches."
Cornelius RachieruHandling Complexity: Framing a Scale of Design
June 9, 2021
"We as humans value warmth information in others more than competence information."
Daniel GloydWarming the User Experience: Lessons from America's first and most radical human-centered designers
May 9, 2024
"I see designers fall back on being the defender of the user like a union boss, but that’s not your only responsibility."
Gretchen AndersonScaling the Human Center
June 8, 2017
"Culture over technology is all that matters. Technology can’t help you out of cultural problems."
Erika FlowersAI-Readiness: Preparing NASA for a Data-Driven, Agile Future
June 10, 2025
"We need to be mindful and sniff out whether the small data we’re using is still fresh or already expired."
Iulia CornigeanuQuantQual Book Club: Small Data
March 8, 2024
"The wrong place is to not start with accessibility; where you start doesn’t matter as long as you do."
Nicole Bergstrom Anna Cook Kate Kalcevich Saara Kamppari-MillerAccessibilityOps: Moving beyond “nice to have”
September 19, 2024
"Effort doesn’t mean progress, hard work doesn’t guarantee a harvest."
Johnny MichaelsenMeasure Behaviors, Not Results
April 23, 2026
"Take your cross-functional partners out to lunch. Build relationships because people don’t resist change; they resist what they don’t know."
Greg PetroffSoftware as Material—A Redux
June 6, 2023
